Image copyrightGoogleImage caption
The council said the only damage was on the side of the road used by buses

A council is spending £121,000 re-laying a block-paved road surface three years after it was completed because it is deteriorating quicker than expected.

Twelve weeks of work has begun at Bournemouth's Horseshoe Common - a so-called "shared space scheme".

The authority said it was not clear whether the problem was a result of the materials but it would be reusing the blocks in an area of lighter traffic.

It said the scheme, aimed at improving safety, had otherwise been successful.

The council initially said a 40% increase in the number of buses using the road since the £1.04m scheme was implemented had contributed to its decline.

However, it later issued a joint statement with operator Yellow Buses, saying there had been "confusion surrounding the number of bus vehicles", there had been no increase in services and the authority did not blame the bus company.

A council statement said: "Regardless of the number of buses, we can see that the road surface has deteriorated much quicker than expected and needs to be rectified... we do not yet know if it is a result of the materials, the workmanship or the specification."